2020 Nissan Armada SUV: Good and Bad

The 2020 Nissan Armada full-size SUV is a mixed bag of class-leading features and coulda, woulda, shoulda. It’s a great size with plenty of luxury features and a lower price than the competition. But fuel economy and a small third seat keep it off of most buyer’s priority list.

Being the basis for the Infinity QX80 the Armada is a great alternative because it features a lot of what the QX80 offers at almost $20,000 less. It features best-in-class towing and standard horsepower. We say standard because there is only one engine; the 5.6-liter V8. As with the sister Titan pickup, all other engine options were killed for 2020. But, 390 hp should afford enough grunt to handle most loads and towing.

2020 Nissan Armada | Nissan

Fuel economy figures are 14 mpg City and 19 mpg Highway. A seven-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is a competent engine companion. The Armada comes standard in two-wheel-drive but there is also a part-time four-wheel-drive option.

Though all-new in 2017 there have been continual upgrades

2020 Nissan Armada | Nissan

This generation of Armada was first introduced in 2017. For 2020 new features include heated outside mirrors on all trim packages, and a new 22-inch 14-spoke aluminum wheel package with 275/50R22 all-season tires are standard for the Platinum Reserve trim level.

SV is the base trim level, which comes with lots of features like dual-zone air conditioning, front heated seats, satellite radio, first row LCD monitor, navigation system, parking assist, and more. Prices start at $47,100.

Premium and Premium Reserve trim levels offer lots of options

The Platinum trim package adds to the SL package with a sliding and tilting sunroof and 20-inch alloy wheels. The Platinum package starts at just over $60,000.

There’s some good and some bad…

2020 Nissan Armada | Nissan

Unfortunately, the infotainment system could use an updating and add to that both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are not currently available. A dual-screen rear-seat entertainment system is optional. A power-folding third-row seat helps when loading stuff into the cargo area, which is large.

The first two rows of seats provide plenty of room, which the third seat leaves something to be desired. Ford’s Explorer offers more third-seat room.

Nissan looks close to making the next generation of Titan pickup, which shares many components with the Armada. So, this may help to explain why Nissan has not been upgraded some of the features. Armada yearly sales had been hovering around 14,000 units a year before this latest version hit in 2017.

Sales jumped up to over 30,000 each year since then. 2019 looks to be a similar estimate, so the Armada is a steady seller for Nissan. We are anxious to see the new Titan next year to get a sneak peek of what the Armada will look like soon after.

With new oversight and a general focus back onto Nissan it will want to make sure that the last few years of malaise are gone, and that new energy helps to bring more customers to Nissan’s dealerships.